sighting here in the east coast. there was the video. >> the red hot streak right at sunset moving behind the manhattan skyline. >> reporter: they think it is also from a jet similar in situation to one in which the plane is visible. >> the trail has been lit by the setting sun. >> reporter: one joker suggested the west coast contrail was iron man. jay leno suggested we follow the trail of the mystery contrail. >> let's play it backwards and trace where the contrail came from. okay. go back. oh, there, there it is! there it is right there. >> reporter: contrail controversi controversies happened before and they'll happen again so -- ♪ happy trails to you >> reporter: make that contrails. ♪ until we meet again >> reporter: jeanne moos, cnn, new york. >> and our chad meyers is

getting lessons on the dos and don'ts of the telestrator this morning. >> tough sometime the imaginations run wild. >> left not much to the imagination. let's wrap it up for us. see you again on monday. >> bright and early. the news continues. kyra phillips starts right now. hey. >> hey, guys. here's the story that is got us talking this morning. a new investigation under way into the fire that crippled the carnival "splendor" cruise ship. it broke out on in an engine room on monday. left 3,000 passengers without air conditioning and hot meals. the ship was finally towed into san diego yesterday. san francisco's mayor expected to veto the city's ban on moat mcdonald's happy meals. the berd of supervisors say toys entice kids to eat unhealthy food. "newsweek" may have adorned the coffee table when you were growing up but in august it was sold for a buck. when's next?

it's merging with the popular online site daily beast. well, we begin with the thousands of weary cruise ship passengers waking up on dry land after a day's long misadventure drifting at sea. many of the passengers and crew members cheered and chanted as a team of tug boats nudged the powerless carnival "splendor" into san diego harbor. some say it was hellish. bad smells, a lot of misinformation. but luckily, everyone is okay. so some passengers are seeing the humor in the situation. right along with our late-night xhe comedians. >> the power blew due to a smoke fire. the toilets did not work. our food was vegetables and fruit on the two-day return. >> everyone knows the story, covered exhaustively in the news.

adrift, no electricity. pop tarts and spam. air lifted. >> delicious sandwich. >> i know. that's whatdy in college. i don't know what the big problem is. the ship towed to san diego safely docked. i'm told now ready an it's -- i think going back out to sea. i think it's on the way -- >> really? >> there it is! it's back. >> oh wow. >> oh. hey. >> look at it. >> good luck, you guys. >> the president of carnival cruise lines spoke to the press today. he said he has everything under control. show the press conference today. first, the safety of our guests and crews is a top priority. second, we want to get them home as quickly as possible. and third, trying to make it as comfortable as we can.

>> all right. we're laughing but not all passengers think it's funny. as a matter of fact, a lot of them are complaining that they weren't even told about a fire that blew out the power. here's what some of them are saying. >> just now they actually told us there was a fire on the boat. >> you did not know that there was a fire on the boat until now? >> yes. >> so what did they tell you why that the boat stopped on your excursion? >> they never told us the issue. they told us there was smoke. there's lots of smoke. >> it was -- it was absolutely deplorable. my expectations were completely fell through the floor. i expected a really nice time and it was like gilligan's island or something. i felt like marooned on a prison ship. you can call it that. because i was in the dark and mayo sandwiches and backed up toilets and it was just bad. it was really bad all the way around. >> carnival was wonderful.

the crew and everybody on it were just friendly and encouraging and big smiles and helpful all the time. they were great. >> they did keep us informed of how long it was going to take us to get back to shore. we were surprised today when we heard that it was a fire. they kept telling us it was just flameless smoke. to keep us calm. i mean, i understand now why they were saying that just to keep everybody calm. i think they handled the situation really well. but it is a shock to kind of learn there was a big fire. >> it was an adventure. i'll tell you that. i mean, from everything from the military to cold water showers to -- to spam, to salads every day. i mean, carnival did great. they did a great job. you know? with just what the resources they had. so, i can't say enough, you know, the crew was great a lot of things went wrong but it was really fun. we went to kids camp.

i met a couple of friends and it was just really fun. >> so exciting to see the land. >> as you can see, a lot of mixed emotions. now, let's take a look at the home video once again. it was shot moments after the fire broke out. now, we actually hear the crew alerting passengers about a smoke situation but we don't hear anything about flames. and that's got a lot of people talking today. two passengers including the man that shot that video sharing their side of the story coming up in less than ten minutes. now, in washington, there may be a deal brewing to give tax breaks to americans at all economic levels. congressional sources in both parties tell cnn that a compromise could extend the bush era tax cut which is are due to expire at the end of the year but republicans and democrats are still divided over whether those cuts should become permanent. >> i want to make sure that taxes don't go up for middle

class families starting on january 1st. that's my number one priority. for those families and for our economy. i also believe that it would be fiscally irresponsible for us to permanently extend the high income tax cuts. i think that would be a mistake. particularly when we have got our republican friends saying that their number one priority is making sure we deal with our debt and deficit. >> lawmakers of both parties are due to meet with the president at the white house next week to discuss their options. in alaska, elections officials still counting the write-in votes for last week's bitterly divided senate race. legal issues may keep the outcome in limbo because a lawsuit by republican nominee joe miller causing one in ten ballots set aside at least for now and asking that any write-in ballot that doesn't spell correctly the name of lisa murkowski be ignored.

they would be challenged and if a court -- if a court sides with wilson, rather, and the outcome of the race depends on those votes. stormy weekend ahead for parts of the midwest and central plains. meteorologist reynolds wolf keeping an eye on that. >> pain in the plains. >> say that three times. >> whatever works and then that's the case. a lot of people are reaching into their cloz etd for the first time in a while getting the ice scraper and possibly cranking up the snow blower. they're going to need it. right now, primarily a rain event. we are talking about a frontal boundary over a thousand miles in the western great lakes down to texas. again, rain right now in green bay. milwaukee, want to get it. chicago, dry for the time being and that's going to change and then getting into des moines, all rain. same keel in kansas city. continue to the west. as we do so, this is where it's interesting. there are people that were waking up in amarillo this morning maybe hearing the rain drops and maybe thunder, now snow. one to three inches possible

before the day is out. cold air behind the frontal boundary and seeing further to the north on saturday. here's the situation for saturday. area of low pressure in the western great lakes and then michigan. cold air, overrunning moisture. might be seeing heavy snow in places. possibly a foot of knowfall near the twin cities and further to the north in thunder bay, not as prevalent. maybe just two to eight inches of snowfall and kind of relative thing. two inches of snowfall doesn't sound bad there. two inches here could shut down the city in atlanta. delays also can be expected, i'd say chicago, possibly twin cities later tonight and in through the weekend and new york and boston, wind might be something to cause a few planes to stay on the tarmac a little bit longer than we like. >> that's really the most scary thing about flying, the winds and go up and down -- >> it can be a problem. >> yeah. >> absolutely. >> so have you taken a carnival cruise? >> i have. >> you have.

any issues? >> nothing like that what we have heard. >> eat too much? >> always. it smelled like rotted food and smelled like bad things and very little power an water. kind of like my college dorm. you know? same thing, yeah. back in school. >> boys in school. absolutely no difference. >> not much of a difference. >> now we know all about reynolds and what he was like in college. not tidy. >> no. >> thank you, reynolds. well, passengers on board the carnival "splendor" expected to be able to fill scrapbooks with mem ris of the mexican cruise. instead, they have photos like these. not the ones you expect. long food lines. smoky hallways. we are going to talk to the passenger who took the photos. [ female announcer ] kids who don't eat breakfast may not be getting the nutrition they need to keep their bodies strong. carnation instant breakfast essentials supplies the nutrients of a balanced breakfast to help build strong muscles and healthy bones. carnation instant breakfast essentials. good nutrition from the start. carnation instant breakfast essentials.

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well, thousands of passengers on board the carnival "splendor" are finally back on land and vacation memories of backed up toilets, smoky hallways and food lines and not told about the fire that actually killed the power that

left them stuck out there in the middle of the pacific. listen to this home video of the crew's announcement. >> to show you it is nothing more than it is we do not need you to bring the life jackets. it is because we don't want you swimming -- it is going to go eventually through and so if you're smelling it, affected you, please come up to the open decks. i'm going to sound the general emergency alarm to put the crew members in position in accordance with the u.s. coast guard rules and regulations. i'll recap one more time. >> a smoke situation as you heard. no mention of flames or a fire and that brings us to today's talker. joining me live from san diego, the passenger that showned that footage and fellow passenger. you guys planned to take a trip to celebrate both of your birthday parties. marquis, it was quite a

celebration. >> yeah. you could say it was like -- it was a bang because when the boat shuttered and all of the smoke came in, that wasn't for us, actually. you know? i guess the motors blew up or caught on fire is what happened is what we're being told. >> here's what interesting. you were never told anything about a fire, just smoke. so ken, when did you guys actually find out that there was a fire? >> actually, right before we disembarked. the c.o. came on the boat and said, you know, they were thankful for everybody, you know, remaining calm while they had the fire on the boat. >> and so, when you -- >> that was the first time they ever told anybody. >> and then when did it -- how did everybody react at that point? >> everybody gasped. as we were disembarking, we were standing in the lobby and the whole, like, lobby area gasped because they were telling us it was a flameless fire and people thinking that's ridiculous to begin with and then finally

admitted it was a fire, then everybody gasped because we find of figured more severe than they were putting on that it was. >> wow. let me play devil's advocate, you know, ken, now looking back, do you think maybe that was a good idea to do that because it seemed -- people seemed to be pretty calm. they didn't panic. they didn't -- nobody went crazy, right? >> no one went crazy but i think by the second day after they put out the fire they could have at least told us there was a small fire. you know, growing up in a school where there's smoke there's fire, you know? it's -- it's pretty easy to add the two together. >> now, marquis, you actually called this a prison ship. why? >> well, because, it was -- we were in the dark. i mean, we had an inside cabin. no window. we were literally, like, trapped and like it was like we were marined in the middle of the ocean and the food -- it was

minimal. very minimal. it was like -- we had no control at all over anything. and it felt like we were imprisoned. the rooms not that big to begin with and planned on being at port, doing fun things on the ship but what happened a lot of times we went to the room and had to sleep because there was nothing else to do and, yeah, they tried to play games and we played cards and tried to make the best of the situation as we could but there was so much down time we slept a lot of the time and you slept. >> you took pictures of food lines, smoky hallways. ken, what do you think the worse part was? >> i think the worst part was standing in line two hours smelling vomit. the bathrooms, walking up to the food line. the spoiled milk that somebody had dropped that wasn't cleaned up or -- i don't know what was going on with that. and then, finally getting there

after two hours and getting a piece of bread with like a small piece of meat or no meat at all. >> yaw said it was vienna sausages at some point. you stuck up for the spam argument saying you didn't see spam but had vienna sausages. >> i didn't see one can of spam at all. i honestly didn't. we -- when the navy dropped their supplies, we saw bean bury tos. we saw that and they were actually -- that was pretty good. >> i was going to say, we ate that in grade school. not a bad thing, guys. final l finally, i mean, obviously -- isn't that sad when we're excited to see a bean bury to, would you do it again? ken? >> as of right now, probably not. i had to think about it. >> marquis? >> if i did it would have to be an outside cabin. >> yes. >> i think that it was my very first cruise and i was -- that

was my first time being -- trying to be out of the country and either i'm going to get back on the horse right away or i'm going to hesitate. i'm not really sure yet. still up in the air for me. >> i don't know. you might want to plan a weekend away to paris maybe. how about that? >> yeah. >> sounds like fun. >> well, happy birthday, guys. sorry it was a rough ride. appreciate you sharing your stories. >> thank you. >> thank you. >> okay. all right. let's travel cross country now. first stop, a pie throwing food fight in new jersey. the students hurmed more than 1,400 chocolate custard pies but it was all for a good cause and possibly a new guiness pie throwing world record. they raised $10,000 for a local soup kitchen. now they await word from the world book of records. upstate, new york, a 74-foot norway spruce of putnam county made the cut as the rockefeller

center new york christmas tree. the lighting is set for november 30th. finally, las vegas, wedding dreams true for lucky military brides. they got the pick of free designer gowns worth thousands of dollars. >> i feel amazing. it's so pretty. i love it. >> i'm appreciative of this experience, this opportunity. >> now those brides for america program provide wedding dresses for military personnel serving in iraq and afghanistan. sarah palin has a lot of titles, former vice presidential nominee. former alaska governor. political commentator. and now, reality show star. we're getting a sneak peek of her new show. [ advisor 1 ] what do you see yourself doing one week,

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♪ well, cnn photo journalists traveling across the country to highlight the service, struggle and success of our men and women in uniform and today for our "veterans in focus" we look at how troops are welcomed home. troops get a special surprise coming through atlanta's hart airport. they get a big hug, old-fashioned greeting from a woman known as the hug lady. photo journalist william walker caught up with her.

>> welcome home. where's home? >> i'm a sucker for a man in uniform. i hug them. because i want them to know they're appreciated. i can't help but want to put my arms around these young people. i want them to know that they're cared about and that we're proud of them. you're welcoming them home. they deserve a hug. >> veterans in focus honor people that dedicated their lives to serving our country.

that whole misperception of being a diva kind of cracks me up. there's a gnat stuck to my lip. i would describe myself, my family as just normal, average, every day americans. if you're planning on visiting

her, she can visit you for, like, 20 minutes. willow, come here. no boys go upstairs. willow? willow? i think that my kids will always call alaska home. the opportunities that we have, the epic landscape, oh my gosh. look at this. i'd rather be out here being free. this is what life is all about. and on a really clear day, you can see russia from here. >> that's alaska sarah palin style. the former vice presidential nominee has a new reality series on tlc showcasing her family and home state. we're talking about it with howard kurtz of the host of cnn's "most reliable sources" and media critic for the daily beast. a number of things to talk about, howard. no political drama here. mama grizzly in the element. what do you make of this and

sarah palin dabbling in everything and now reality tv? >> message, she's not a diva. she said it herself. this is the best of all possible political image making, kyra. it is not a political commercial. you get to see the wondrous beauty of alaska. you see palin with her family. she gets to make even more money. lieic when she says we're an average family. multimillion dollar book contracts and fox news studio at her home and it's, you know, it's probably going to get a big audience. it is good for tlc and it kind of further solidifies her image as the wild frontiers woman from wasilla. >> is this an interesting way to possibly gear up for running for a presidency? i mean, you bring up a really good point. we don't get to know a lot of inside scoop of our candidates and our presidential candidates. i mean, this is just -- i mean, it is all out there to see. >> we all know that reality shows don't quite reflect

reality. they're carefully edited and, you know, it is not -- you know, the image that you will see over these weeks of sarah palin and her native state is image of pretty much she wants you to see. she has a say in how this is presented and so, you know, probably fascinating and draw a good audience, a money maker. let's not assume we're kind of eavesdropping of what goes on in the palin family. >> point well made. probably a drama we don't see and has to be with the kids and everything going on. speaking of big money and big audience, conan o'brien's first week, he just killed everybody else in the ratings. we wanted to pull a clip. poking fun at his, well, we know. he says his new employer but we know ted turner hasn't been around for a while. let's take a look. >> is there anything about this show that you like, mr. turner?

>> one thing, i have to congratulate you on is this beautiful set, yes. now orks officially named turner stud owe. >> okay. no, it's stage 15. >> it was. until i entered it. ♪ >> that's so stupid. >> so stupid but he's doing so well, howie. >> well, good for conan bouncing back from that humiliating fall from "the tonight show" and reclaimed by jay leno. i wouldn't mind fired if i got $32 million in the process and hard thing for conan to go through. here on a cable network owned by time warner, he doesn't have to do 5 million viewers a night like the pressure of "the tonight show." he needs a younger audience profitable for the cable network and so his competition in my view not so much leno and letterman but jon stewart and

stephen colbert that compete for comedy central. >> finally, and you know, you're a daily beast guy and also someone who has read "newsweek d"newsweek" for years like i did growing up. we see this merger. >> four weeks ago it appeared dead but now the daily beast and harmon that bought "newsweek" are merging. it is a website and magazine. a great challenge for tina brown, my boss. she's put together a terrific website at the daily beast. "newsweek" lost most of the stars, some of its circulation. losing money for years and takes magic and luck to revive it as a print magazine. i'm anxious to see how she does it and i would like to be part of it, as well. >> she is quite a business woman. thanks so much. >> thanks, kyra. >> all right. stock selloff spreading around the world. stocks fell in asia and europe. we are next. alison kosik at new york stock

exchange with more. alison? >> global concerns weighing on stocks today. china shanghai composite fell more than -- 600-point drop on the dow. not expecting to see that today but we are seeing a modest selloff. now that the opening bell has rung. now, all started with china. spooked the market with talk of raising interest rates to slow its own growth and in turn slow the overall global recovery. also hurting the market today, europe. there are worries about ireland defaulting on its debt and need a bailout much like the one greece went through last spring and roll it together and we have got a really weak opening taking a look at stocks now, dow industrials down about 63 points. nasdaq off about 14. now, before i leave you, kyra, this thought. bernie madoff's boxers. you can own them. you could also own his socks. remember bernie madoff? biggest fraud in wall street history. the government is putting more

than 400 items up for auction tomorrow in new york city. they include personal care items like cuticle scissors and house slippers. but you can also get big stuff like a 10.5 carat diamond ring valued at $350,000. and a steinway piano, as well. what will you do? go for the socks or the boxers? prada panty hose, a keeper, right? >> that's ridiculous. >> yum. >> yes. >> the boxers are new. not used. >> although, comfortable to sleep in. let's admit. alison, thanks. >> ugh. all right. half past the hour. stories that got us talking. extending the bush era tax cuts back on president obama's priority list. favors the extension of the middle class and against permanent cuts for the wealthy and plans to meet with leaders of both parties next week after returning from asia a. compromise could be in the works. passenger aboard the carnival cruise say they weren't told that there was a fire on

board until they arrived in california. they're also telling nightmarish stories of three days with not having any air conditioning, hot showers or decent food. and american video game where players try to kill castro sparked outrage in cuba. a website denounced the website for glorifying assassination a. cube ban-american site said what the u.s. couldn't accomplish in 50 years they're not trying to do virtually. it was created by a california-based company. a case of bad timing has the creator of a garfield cartoon strip apologizing. look at what appeared in newspapers nationwide on veterans day showing a spider's thoughts asking a classroom of spiders, quote, does anyone here know why we celebrate national stupid day? one panel has garfield squishing the spider saying, if you squish me, i shall become famous and holding a remembrance day of my

honor you flat slob. jim davis said he was created a year ago and had no idea it would appear on veterans day. before you board your next flight, you may find yourself revealing much more than you wanted to in a controversial, new body scanner. a lawsuit demanding they be pulled from u.s. airports. ice 1) we've detected an anomaly... (voice 2) how bad is it? (voice 1) traffic's off the chart... (voice 2) they're pinging more targets... (voice 3) isolate... prevent damage... (voice 2) got 'em. (voice 3) great exercise guys. let's run it again.

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well, the ager is building and so's the opposition to the heightened security measure that is are now going into places at airports across the u.s. the pilots' unions for u.s. airways and american airlines are surging members to avoid the newer, full body scans. they cite possible health risks of the radiation and privacy concerns over the revealing images. two unions represent more than 16,000 pilots. they're being asked to request private pat downs instead of the scanners. and the fight against the body scanners is also being waged in court a. consumer privacy activist filed a lawsuit demanding the tsa pull the machines from u.s. airports. brian burger appeared earl ler

on cnn's "american morning." >> there are health concerns, privacy concerns. we're working with religious groups that think the whole thing is offensive and i think the american public has become increasingly frustrated. we can't let the tsa decide what the legal authority is. that's a decision to be made by a court. >> there's some question, too, marc how effective the machines are and could they have detected the type of explosive that was tried to employ on christmas day last year. >> that's a critical question, john. i think it is one of the reasons we feel most strongly about the need to suspend the program. if we thought it was effective to guarantee the safety of travelers, we would have a different view but you see before we filed this lawsuit we filed another lawsuit under the freedom of information act and we actually obtained the technical specifications for the devices and we looked at the specifications, talked to the experts and we all reached the same conclusion. these devices are not designed to detect the type of powder

explosives the petn that was ususe ed. they're not the right technology to deal with a current threats. and that, i think, is one of the most important points about this program. >> well, there's an online campaign to rally all air travelers against the full body scanners. various groups asking fliers to refuse the scans on november 24th, day before thanksgiving and busiest travel day of the year. what do you think, to scan or not to scan? that's the debate over your body at the airport. we want to know what you think. head to my blog. cnn.com/kyra and sound off. michael steele's got a rival, a michigan republican aims to take the rnc chair right out from under him. ♪

all right. let's talk about two big-name republicans. one has a challenger. the other going out on tour. senior political editor mark preston. mark, fill us in. >> hey, kyra. michael steele, will he run again for another term as chairman of the republican national committee? regardless of running or doesn't run, he's going to have a challenger now. sal anuzis of michigan. he will run for the chairmanship of the rnc. he ran against michael steele back in 2009 for the chairmanship and came in third. interesting thing about him, he's in his 50s and one of the gentleman that embraced social

media and in addition to the letter to the members of the rnc asking for the vote, he sent it out on twitter. just shows you how times changed. that election in january. talk about another big name, sarah palin is going to be chris cross the country again. not necessarily stumping for candidates like we saw in the midterm elections. she is pushing her new book "america by heart." of course, going rogue was such a huge best seller. she went into certain states and reached out to constituencies. when's interesting is she is going on a 13-state, 11-day tour. some of the states are actually early presidential states. including iowa and south carolina. so, is she going to run for president? this book tour might give us more insight, kyra. >> what is this about telling our friends at "people" magazine about the marriage? >> people can't get enough about the palins, i guess including

us. there's a rumor that, in fact, they were going to break up and sarah palin going to give him a payoff of $20 million. now, kyra, i have to tell you, as much as my wife loves me, i would have to tell you to take the $20 million if i had it and get out. there's a lot of money. they're laughing it off and telling our friends at request t "people" that this is not the truth. kyra? >> you have got to be a sense of humor as the husband of sarah palin. a reminder of the political news gorks to cnnpolitics.com. a video game where players battle to kill fidel castro. it's an american game and cuba is outraged about it. saying it's a shame to that gamers are encouraged to do what the cia couldn't. [ woman ] you know, as a mom,

i worry about my son playing football. which is why i'm really excited. because toyota developed this software that can simulate head injuries and helps make people safer. then they shared this technology with researchers at wake forest to help reduce head injuries on the football field. so, you know, i can feel a bit better about my son playing football. [ male announcer ] how would you use toyota technology to make a better world? learn how to share your ideas at toyota.com/ideasforgood.

♪ all right.

well, scanning the morning passport, we begin in moscow with the undercover world of spying. a respected russian newspaper identified a high-ranking officer that exposed a spy ring in the u.s. the officer's information led to the arrest of ten russian agents in several u.s. cities back in june. among cities. among them, this red-headed bomb shell anna chapman. many people had been secretly working for years in the u.s. and exchanged to russia in july. now, to cuba, where the american video game "kill castro" is under fire. it's the latest exchange in a long history of strained cuba ties. >> reporter: a new american video game literally takes aim at cuba's fidel castro. one of the first missions in "call of duty black ops" is to rub out the young leader of

cuban revolution, and unlike in real life, players appear to do just that in disturbingly gory detail. no official reaction from the government here in havana, but this state-run website denounced the game for glorifying assassination and inciting america's youth to behave like violent sociopaths. it also ridicules the cia. what the united states couldn't accomplish in more than 50 years, they are now trying to do virtually, it says. in real life, castro outlasted ten u.s. administrations and avoided assassination attempts. illness forced him to step down in 2006 but after four years of seclusion, fidel castro is back in action. he's not in power but has his trademark fatigues on and tours havana.

cuba has taken a different path when it comes to keeping the cold war alive for its use. the attempts on castro have been re-enacted in a big-budget tv series, and in country episode, the cia has scientists development a poisonous cigar for his visit to new york. the plot is foiled when new york's police chief refuses to deliver them. >> you're dead. we will kill you. you kill the double. >> reporter: even in call of duty, castro proves immortal at the end. >> here's my gift to you in honor of our new relationship. we're following lots of development in the newsroom. first, mark preston. will your taxes increase in the new year? well, congress returns after the midterm elections for the lame duck session next week and they're going to tackle this sticky issue. let me give you a snapshot of the forecast in texas.

in amarillo, they have raindrops, that now switched over to snow. parts of the midwest up to a foot of snow as we move into the weekend. i'm a.j. hammer in new york. the latin grammys take over vegas. encouraging signs for troubled star. all coming up at the top of the hour. right now, a woman is living in a glass box. her only contact with the outside world is social media. she's got a serious message, though, and we're going to talk to her about it in the next hour. fin

♪ call it a comeback. >> call it a comeback. you're always making a comeback. >> how are you? >> good friday to you. >> are you ready? >> can we have fun before we start the sports. i don't know when your kids were doing when they were 3. >> they weren't doing this. >> check out 3-year-old jonathan. >> this guy -- my kids at 3 were sitting in front of the

television watching barney. this isn't even the first movement. >> this is the fourth movement of beethoven's fifth. >> you think at 3, he's going to take on the first movement. no! this kid, yes, is taking on the hard stuff. >> he's on cue. >> yes, he is. >> look at this. he goes soft and then, boom and goes soft, and he's in. >> here's the thing. he's still 3. there are few 3-year-old moments here. for example at some point in the movement, the house hold allergies kick in and he's all about his nose, all about his nostrils and the treasures within. >> i don't know. i think jonathan is moving on to great things. >> look. >> oh, there you go, he did wipe his nose. there he goes. >> all about the nostrils here. mom, the allergies, the dust mights too much for me, right?

>> dust mites, explosion, falcons/ravens. >> all of that last night. i go to bed a little early, thinking the falcons are going to take it on the chin, right and then we get this amazing comeback. you get this play from joe flacco that puts the ravens on top, and then you get this, closing seconds of the game, roddy white, the hometown team wins on a think-year touchdown pass from matt the miracle brian to the guy who people are saying might be the front-runner, nine games into the season, roddy white, who was hurt this week. we weren't sure he was going to be able to play but here he is with a touchdown. >> is the miami heat going to be able to play. >> you want to talk about a team on the top of their game, the falcons, and a team on that

mendoza line. miami could be more mediocre if they lose another game and go to .500. look at this. rondo of the celtics goes right down the lane, slam dunk, not a heat defender in site, and the one who is close doesn't want any part of it. >> adios. >> this is the revenge gape, first game of the season the heat goes into boston and lost. this is the rejench game and they lost this game, too. >> celtics talked serious trash. >> you remember at the time of the announcement, the big television special with lebron, i'm going to take my talents to south beach. here is paul pierce at the end of the game. it's been a pleasure to bring my talents to south beach.

hello! good night! exclamation point. there you go. which one? >> i'll take it. >> bang. >> there you go. >> nice shot. happy friday. tony harris, appreciate it. we're going to cue the music. >> i'm behind on my show prep. >> let me see a little something. take your talents back. >> i'll take them down to south beach, all right. it is a weekend, after all. 10:00 a.m. on the east coast, 7:00 a.m. out west. we have stories that we've been talking about all morning. a new investigation under way into the fire that crippled the carnival "splendor" cruise ship. that fire broke out in an engine room and left 3,000 passengers without hot meals. that ship towed into san diego yesterday. that fire being investigated now. a window into the internet world. a los angeles woman spending 30

days locked away in a glass box as a symbolic warning about social media. the message is an overrelyians on facebook and twitter can leave people isolated. fixing america's schools. should they be run like a business? new york's troubled school system about to get a new boss. she hasn't spent any time in the classroom. let's see if an education outsider can bring in some fresh answers. we begin in washington. there may be a deal brewing that would give tax breaks to americans at all economic levels. you may remember that the political parties are divided over two big issues, first, economic lines. the democrats want to extend the bush era tax cuts only to the middle class and only temporary. republicans are demanding that the wealthy get the tax break and they want the cuts to be made permanent. congressional sources tell cnn a

compromise may be in the works but president obama said a short time ago he won't budge. mark preston joining us from washington. where do we stand on a possible compromise? >> kyra, this is one of these incredible situations where we have a lame duck congress, republicans who have made so many gains in the midterm elections, and yet congress has to come back next week and tackle this very thorny issue, a issue that was front and center in the campaign. right now, what we're hearing on capitol hill is there could be a deal struck right now between congressional democrats and republicans, and that deal would look something like this. there would be not a permanent extension of the tax cuts for the middle class. that's for families, couples who make $250,000 and under and the wealthy as well. you would have a temporary extension, maybe a year or two, and as you said, president obama over in seoul said he is not in the mood for compromising, although what he did say, which is kind of interesting -- our

own ed henry is traveling with him -- he thinks it would be fiscally good to permanent extend them. there might be some wiggle room for a temporary extension. >> the republicans were outspoken about the nation's deficit. how are they defending making the tax cuts permanent? >> an excellent question. interestingly enough, i was at stamford university, and i met with the hoover group, and they say extending the tax cuts for wealthy is it a small blip in the grand scheme of things, and the republicans say it will help to generate innovation and the private sector is what drives the economy, not the private sector. this new cnn poll released a week ago showing what americans think about tax cuts, when you look at the numbers, it shows that 8% of americans think it's

the most important economic problem facing the countries but republicans will argue that those tax cuts will help turn the economy around, which, of course, is the number one issue, and that is unemployment at 58%. some people say republicans would be smart to let them expire and take them up again in january. what's the thinking behind that? >> politically, that's the way to go because they gained so much ground in the house, 60 seats, and six seats in the senate, so they have a much stronger majority. what they could do is try to get conservative democrats to join them and make it a permanent extension. the g-20 economic summit has wrapped up in seoul, south korea, but president obama is not returning with the trade deal he wanted. he says talks are still ongoing in a deal that could create 70,000 jobs for americans. the world leaders were unable to hammer out a comprehensive plan

to revive the global recovery. the wide range of policies were outlined for future debate. president obama says there was a hard won con sense us on world trade and better balancing international growth. they also greed not to ignite a battle in a free for all over their economic occurrences is. they can't agree on how to prevent another global recession. thousands of cruise ship passengers waking up from their first night on dry land after days on a long misadventure drifting at sea. many of the passengers and crew members cheered, whistled, waved and chanted as the carnival "splendor" came into the san diego harbor. some passengers say the cruise was hellish, day after day of cold food, bad smells and a lot of misinformation. >> we were in the dark. we had an inside cabin. we had no window. we were literally like trapped

it was like we were marooned in the middle of the ocean, and the food was minimal, very minimal. we had no control at all over anything and it felt like we were in prison. the rooms are not that big to begin with. we didn't plan on being in our room. we planned on being in port and fun things on the ship. in actuality, we went into our room and had to sleep because there was nothing else to do. they tried to play games and we played cards and tried to make the best of the situation as we could, but there was so much down time that we slept a lot of the time. it was dark. you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. >> others say it wasn't so bad and carnival did everything it could in a bad situation. >> it was an adventure. i'll tell you that. everything from the military to cold water showers to spam, to salads every day, but, i mean, carnival did a great job.

you know, with just the resources they it. >> we should also point out that carnival says no passengers were actually served spam and everyone is okay. some passengers are seeing the humor in the situation, right along with our late-night comedians. ♪ the power blew due to a smoke fire ♪ ♪ the toilets did not work ♪ our food was vegetables and fruit ♪ >> everybody knows this story. adrift for three days, no electricity, surviving on pop tarts and spam. a delicious sandwich. >> that's what i did in college. i don't know what the big problem is. the ship was towed to san diego, safely docked, and it's now ready and already going out to sea. >> really? >> there it is. it's back. >> oh, wow. look at it. >> good luck you guys.

[ applause ] >> the president of carnival cruise line spoke to the press today, and he said he has everything under control. show the press conference today. >> first, the safety of our guests and crews are top. second, we want to get them home as quickly as possible, and, third, we're trying to make it as comfortable for the guests as we can. >> didn't mean to tee you up with that, reynolds. how do you top that? >> the objective is to have the trip of a lifetime, moments that you'll never forget. >> they'll never forget those moments. >> they accomplished both of those tasks. we got some interesting news this morning, and the news is not in the form of raindrops but rather snowflakes. we are going to see rain on radar, the blues and yellows, and a bit of green. when you travel to the south, to

the end of this frontal boundary, snow. it started off as raindrops but now snow possibly up to the tune of 1 to 3isms of snow before the day is out. let me show you something else. pretty nice on the east and west coast, dry conditions for boston, breezy, 77. same deal in atlanta, mainly 70s, 74 in phoenix, and portland 52 degrees, sunny skies and high clouds. in the middle of the country, that's where the bull's eye is. tomorrow, everything changes. especially the midwest. this is all coming together bringing moisture into parts of the midwest and the overrunning moisture with cool conditions at the surface. that's going to give you snow. the twin cities could see from 6 to 12 inches of snowfall before all is said and done. i'm said and done. back to you, kyra. >> that was short and sweet. >> very simple.

lindsay lohan, we've heard more about her court cases and rehab stints than her movies. now she is reaching out to her outspoken father from rehab. details on a major breakthrough on their strained relationship. gecko: are you ready for your talk, sir?

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drew barrymore plays a young girl in the film "fire starter" 160 films produced by delaurent tis over a span of 60 years. he died wednesday at his beverly hills home with his family by his side, 91 years old. he was nominated for 35 oscars, by the way. the stars with out for the latin graham awards in las vegas, and lindsay lohan is working on her strained relationship with her father while in rehab. hey, a.j. >> the latin grammy awards but on a show that las vegas appreciates. it was a really, really fun night. performances by stars bike mark anthony and enrique iglesias.

they were backed up by marches bans that can overshadow the awards given out in over 48 categories. the mexican pop rock group camilla is being called a winner. we congratulate them. always a good show. >> we are hearing that lindsay lohan is getting help from her dad. all over the entertainment shows. what's going on? >> this can only be a good thing. lindsay lowen and her father michael have had a rocky relationship. they are getting some family therapy at the betty ford clinic. she was allowed to take a trip to the mall with her dad and he said he and his daughter had a great time hanging out he he hopes they're going to have his wife and lindsay's mom dina join

them for a therapy session. he's optimistic and says lindsay's rehab is going very well. we can hope this is true and maybe, just maybe, this is the beginning of the end of her drama. unfortunately, i believe i've said that before. >> yes, many, many, time, my dear a.j. have a good weekend. you want information on everything breaking in the entertainment world, a.j.'s got it every day at 5:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. a woman's only human contact fosh a month? well, she's doing it through social media. we're going to talk about why she's gone behind the glass. mom, new shoes? old legs. p.a.d., the doctor said. p-a-d... p.a.d. isn't just poor circulation in your legs

causing you pain. it more than doubles your risk of a heart attack or stroke. i was going to tell you. if you have p.a.d., plavix can help protect you from a heart attack or stroke. plavix helps keep blood platelets from sticking together and forming clots, the cause of most heart attacks and strokes. call the doctor about plavix -- please? i will. [ male announcer ] certain genetic factors and some medicines such as prilosec reduce the effect of plavix leaving you at greater risk for heart attack and stroke. your doctor may use genetic tests to determine treatment. don't stop taking plavix without talking to your doctor as your risk of heart attack or stroke may increase. people with stomach ulcers or conditions that cause bleeding should not use plavix. taking plavix alone or with some other medicines including aspirin may increase bleeding risk, so tell your doctor when planning surgery. tell your doctor all medicines you take including aspirin especially if you've had a stroke. if fever, unexplained weakness or confusion develops, tell your doctor promptly. these may be signs of ttp, a rare but potentially life-threatening condition, reported sometimes less than two weeks after starting plavix. other rare but serious side effects may occur.

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let's travel cross country. first stop, pie throwing food fight in new jersey.

more than 1400 chocolate custard pies were hurled for a good cause and possible new guinness pie throwing world record. the students raised 10 grand for a local soup kitchen and now they're waiting to hear from guinness world records. next stop, 74-foot norway spruce made the cut as this year's rockefeller center christmas tree. finally, las vegas, wedding dreams came true on veterans day for some pretty lucky military brides. they got their pick of free designer gowns worth thousands of dollars. >> i feel amazing. it's so pretty. . i love it. >> i'm really appreciate for this experience. >> they provide wedding gowns for military personnel serving in iraq and afghanistan. a woman is living in a glass box for a month. her only contact with the

outside world is through social media, skype, twitter, text messages. may sound like stunt to you but she has a serious message behind her public isolation project. she joins us to talk about it via skype from portland oregon. we are also bringing in paul gilliland. he's in dallas. kristin what gave you this idea? >> well, this is a collaboration with josh elliott. we were talking one day. he was talking about a project that he knew he wanted to use this space and put someone in here and have it represent our 24- -- basically our 24-accessibility, and our lack of privacy, and i have been interested in social media and human interaction for a long time, and we basically had a conversation and realized this koob good project for us to do together. >> what is the point you're

trying to get across by doing this? >> i just want people to kind of take a step back and look at how all of these new technologies have changed how we communicate with each other. it's not all bad stuff but we should look at how it changes our daily lives. >> how are people reacting to you as they walk by you in the box? >> i'm getting some really great responses. people have been really supportive. at first they think it's kind of strange but when they look deeper and read about the project, i get great responses. people are supportive. >> paul what do you think of kristin's project. >> it certainly is an attention grabber, kyra. i'm not sure that the privacy issues that she is trying to highlight are quite as serious as some people may think, but it's always good to make people aware of how technology like this is changing our lives and the way we communicate. >> kristin what do you think?

do you think there are issues with regard to privacy that folks are just not paying attention to and they're being irresponsible? >> well, i think that all of these things are so new that a lot of people haven't had time to digest them. one thing that stands out to me is kind of a generational thing where you have the younger generations who don't felter what they're saying on the internet, and they don't if any attention to all of these other companies and stuff that are using their information, and then there's generation, my generation, where we see the good and the bad, so it's interesting to look at that, and even look at my parents' generation and see how we all look at things differently. that's another reason i got really interested in this project. >> we want to know how you get food, when do you go to the restroom. give us the inside specifics that we are all dying to know. >> yeah, the basic idea here is not about me suffering. it's about me trying to create a

living space as much like my own home as i could. the only thing i'm trying to suffer with is getting by without human interaction. basically i do have a private bathroom and shower, which is great. that would be a little too extreme for me, i think. i also have a kitchenette, and i get groceries delivered once a week and i order all of that stuff on line. >> paul, we want people to interact more and have face-to-face communication, right, and write old fashion thank you notes. >> yes, and i think there is a misperception that the internet is making us more inward focused and isolated. evidence is quite to the contrary. a report by a syndicated research form called mri this year of americans say people more active in twitter are more active in their offline

activities. the website meetup.com was created to organize offline meetings and they coordinate 250,000 meetings a month now. many people are forming rich relationships in the real world because they first meet them on line. 1 out of 6 marriages right now in america begin through an online interaction. you can make a counterargument that the internet is making us moor connected with the people around us. >> kristin, we want to see if you make it through all 30 days. do you think when you're finished that you will communicate differently with people in your life? >> i don't know. it's only been 12 days. we'll see how i feel. it's changing all of the time. >> we will follow up in the couple of weeks. the school's biggest school system gets a new boss, one with no education leadership experience. we'll see how this affects the million so students who go to

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it's now half past the hour. extending the bush era tax cuts back on president obama's priority list. the president favors the extension for the middle class but against permanent cut us for the wealthy. he plans to meet with leaders of both parties next week after returning from asia. a compromise could be in the works. san francisco's mayor expected to veto the ban on toys in mcdonald's happy meals deemed to unhealthy. the board of supervisors approved the ordinance with a veto-proof majority. cruise ship passengers waking up from their first night on dry land after days of a long misadventure drifting at sea. they cheered, whistled, and waved as the carnival "splendor" came back into the san diego harbor. some say the cruise was hell

issue. here's what some of them are say ppg they just told us there was a fire in the boat. >> did you not know there was a fire on the boat until now? >> yes. >> so did they tell you why the boat suddenly stopped on your excursi excursion. >> they never told us what the issue was. all they told us ises there smoke, lots of smoke. >> it was absolutely deplorable. my expectations were completely fell through the floor. i expected a really nice time and it was like gilligan's island. i felt like i was marooned on a prison ship because i was in the dark, had mayo sandwiches and backed up toilets. it was just really bad. >> carnival was wonderful. the crew and everybody on it were just friendly and encouraging and big smiles and

helpful all of the time. they were great. >> they did keep us informed of how long it was going to take us to get back to shore. we were surprised that we heard it was a fire today. they kept telling us it was flameless smoke. to kweep us calm. i understand now why they were saying that, just to keep everybody calm. i think they handled the situation really well, but it is a shock to kind of learn that there was a big fire. >> it was an adventure. i'll tell thank you. everything from the military to cold water showers to spam, to salads every day. but, i mean, carnival did a great job. you know, with just the resources they had. so i can't say enough. the crew was great. >> a lot of things went wrong but it was really fun. we went to kids camp. i met a couple of friends. it was just really fun. >> it was so exciting to see land.

well, the largest school system in the u.s. is getting a new leader, kathleen black will take over as chancellor of new york city's public schools. the first woman to head that system which serves about 1.1 million students. black is a publishing exec with no political or leadership experience, so she's asking for patience as she gets up to speed on the issues of facing k through 12 education. she's taking over for joel kline, who has been running the show since 2002. he says the system is it still failing. kline spoke exclusively to cnn education contributor steve perry about why he's stepping aside. >> you were the chancellor of new york city's public schools, the largest school system in this country, and then i get an e-mail says that you resigned. >> i resigned on tuesday. >> sometimes in the professional

world, resignation is a nice way of saying we don't want you here anymore. did that happen? >> this was my time and i really had another career in me and i wanted to move on but i have zero doubt if i had wanted to stay and go to the end, island have. you will see me in the arena -- i'm a guy that comes with eight years of experience and a lost tire tracks on my back to show for it. i'm not worried about my voice. the power of my voice comes from the fact that i'm not afraid to call them were when see see them. we are failing kids, particularly kids of color, andkies who grow up in poverty, and that failure is taking on wider dimensions. research shows that middle class kids are not performing. i'm not worried about my voice. more importantly, this movement is a movement with lots of voice. >> you talk about the movement.

from what are you moving to what are you moving? >> it's a great question. we're moving from a system that tolerated massive inexkitties, and failed to educate large numbers of kids. i mean totally failed. kids dropping out of high school in the 21st century. there's a winning hand, dropping out of high school in the 21st century, you know. where job skills and the demands of we economy are entirely different. so the mismatch between what the kids are prepared to do and what the workforce is going to demand is enormous and widening. >> keep in mind, there are more than 1 million students attending new york public schools. steve perry joining us on the phone from hartford connecticut. what's the bottom line here? if things were looking better, why would he want to leave? is it a nicer paycheck at a better job. >> he said he was done.

it was time to move on and he wanted to try something different. he has ideas about how to bring technology to bring quality instruction to kids all over the country and if he gives access to the very best instructors through things like the computer, then he can create opportunities for children to learn. i wanted to know from him, did the union run you out did the mayor say that he'd have enough, did the republicans winning in the midterms have anything to do with it? he said, no, this has been going for a while. for about three months he had been having conversations with the mayor, with bloomberg, and it was just time. he made a deal that he would sign on for two terms, and mayor bloomberg ran for a third and won, and he was saying that he simply was ready to move on. >> so, why did mayor bloomberg pick kathleen black? what do we know about her?

>> well, that's the question. i think that he finds in her someone who can run an organization. you know, very often, educators get real persnickety about whether or not somebody from outside the system can run the system, but since we're doing a horrible job at running it, why not give someone else a shot. >> wow, steve perry, we'll follow it. steve prry on our education beat 24/7. are you ready for some football? this looking like any american team but it's not. these kids are hitting the gridiron in jerusalem. >> nice. because toyota developed this software that can simulate head injuries and helps make people safer. then they shared this technology with researchers at wake forest to help reduce head injuries on the football field. so, you know, i can feel a bit better about my son playing football. [ male announcer ] how would you use toyota technology to make a better world? learn how to share your ideas

at toyota.com/ideasforgood. learn how to share your ideas this site has a should i try priceline instead? >> no it's a sale. nothing beats a sale! wrong move! you. you can save up to half off that sale when you name your own price on priceline. but this one's a deal...trust me. it's only pretending to be a deal. here, bid $79. got it. wow! you win this time good twin! there's no disguising the real deal. we're scanning our morning passport. let's start in jerusalem where something is happening that's pretty exciting. it's called football, american-style. with quarterbacks, touchdowns, tackles, the whole nine yards. maybe i should say 50 yards. usually that part of the world, football means scoring a goal

and players celebrating by taking off their shirts, but this is the afl, the israel football league with ultra orthodox jews playing on the gridiron and sometimes israeli settlers play wig palestinians, but the players say politics is not an issue here. >> when you put on your held fet, you're just a football player, a defensive end, linebacker, whatever it is you play and we're just guys coming together to play football. >> in the ifl, teams play in hopes of taking home the coveted trophy from the israel bowl. now to china, where policy makers are weighing a one-dog policy. under a proposed law, dog owners would be required to neuter their dogs, give away puppies or send them to a government-approved adoption agency. nearly 19 million people and 18 million pet dogs live in

shanghai. it was 30 years ago they instituted the one-child policy for population control. an atlanta woman is changing lives through sweets. how a cake baking contest is helping women find a path forward. 6 ♪

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this thing is okey-mcsmokey skiddly-doo. great! i think. diggity. oh! still not sure. the "name your price" tool. only from progressive. call or click today. a group of homeless women in atlanta are getting the chance to put on chef's hats, crack a few eggs and stir up cake batter with the pros. they're learning their way around the kitchen, thanks to patty green, a woman making a mark because she's determined to give these women a step up. >> i've gained a few pounds. >> it's beautiful.

it's a beautiful venture. >> reporter: patty green's laugh echoes through a kitchen classroom just outside atlanta. she's a trained social worker/baker, and today, like so many days before, she's transforming lives with flour, sugar and good will. >> i love to help people. that's my passion, and i love cake. >> reporter: the students here today have fallen on tough times. they're homeless and living in a shelter, but for the next few hours, they are would-be pastry chefs being trained by the pros at the culinary school of atlanta. >> butter cream is hard as well because it's hard to get it to look nice and smooth, but once you take a couple of classes and practice, you are able to do that. >> reporter: this is the first of three classes coordinated by patty. the end goal, entering a cake contest in december. the women from my sister's house

shelter will compete. >> i love to do cakes, and i used to watch the food network all the time, how they have all of the competitions, and i was like i would never be able to do that. but in this, i can. >> reporter: serena randall is all smiles as she eyes a contest win. she's been up against tougher challenges. she's a mother, a grandmother and a recovering crack addict. >> i was in my drug addiction to two years. i lost everything i had. i had a home and i had a vehicle. so i lost everything, and in order for me to -- i let my kids go stay with their grandmother. it was hard at first, but, you know, i kept seeking help and now i'm better. >> reporter: serena says the kitschen is a stepping stone towards recovery a a new life. >> the nine-month program for

the cake and pastries, i think i would like to do that. >> reporter: hope fostered by patty green. >> there are people out here that care for them that have their best interests at heart, and that we're there for them to help enhance whatever it is they want to do. >> she is awesome. the cakes she made are so beautiful. that's inspiration that i wouldn't mind doing that. it's very inspiring. >> well the women from my sister's house shelter will enter their cakes in a kons test on december 5th. we'll update you on who walks away with the win. each of the women we talked to say just participating is a prize itself. the republicans had a sweep in the election but it may surprise you that less than half of the people polled of happy with the results. [ j. weissman ] it was 1975.

my professor at berkeley asked me if i wanted to change the world. i said "sure." "well, let's grow some algae." and that's what started it. exxonmobil and synthetic genomics have built a new facility to identify the most productive strains of algae. algae are amazing little critters. they secrete oil, which we could turn into biofuels. they also absorb co2. we're hoping to supplement the fuels that we use in our vehicles, and to do this at a large enough scale to someday help meet the world's energy demands. of some of the annoying symptoms menopause brings. go introducing one a day menopause formula. the only complete multivitamin with soy isoflavones to help address hot flashes and mild mood changes. new one a day menopause formula.

the anger is building, and so is the opposition to the heightened security measures that are now going into place at airports across the u.s. the pilots unions for u.s. airways and american airlines are urging their members to avoid the newer full-body scans. they cite possible health risks from frequent exposure to the radiation and private concerns. two unions represent more than 16,000 pilots. they're being asked to request private pat-downs instead of scan. there is a rally against the scans. there is a movement to ask

passengers to avoid scans on the 24th of november, the busiest traveling day of the year. anna says i think these body scans violate my privacy. i prefer to drive to my destinations rather than fly. jose says, people want to complain about the body scans, but they were stop when they catch something. bruce says this issen overreaction by the tsa. they come up with new ways to search us to make us believe they can protect us. skip says, a person willing to kill himself and possibly hundreds of others by blowing up a plane is not worried about privacy. there are some things we have to deal with until a better option becomes available. we're taking the political ticker to baltimore this hour. deputy political director paul

steinhauser there covering the freedom works event. tell us about it, paul. >> you got it, kyra. they have been meeting behind closed doors since yesterday. it's a major conservative grass roots organization, and they have put a lot of the heft behind the tea party movement and spent a lot of money supporting tea party candidates and getting them elected to congress. that's watts going 0 on here. those lawmakers-elect are working with them here. freedom works is at thing these people to stay true what you campaigned for. there may be pressure for you new conservative lay makers when they come to washington to make deals with the establishment republicans, and the theme here is to stay true to your conservative roots. they have a news conference coming up in about a half hour, and we will report back after it is over. also today, check out the brand new numbers from pugh. they released a poll about

whether people were happy with the election results from the midterms last week. 48% of all americans yetted said they were happy. of course, the republicans storming back and retake, the house of representatives in the mid terms. 34% saying they were unhappy and that 48% number is lower by 12 points than the 6 in 10 four years ago who said they were happy that the democrats won back congress and also lower than the amount of people in 1994 when the republicans stormed back and took congress. it shows that people are not in love with the republicans, either, kyra. >> let's talk about, well, two people we're in love with, candy crowelly and jessica yellin. >> let me brag about them. candy, our chief political correspondent. she has a bigger and on sunday. george w. bush and jeb bush, two-fer, two for the price of

one. that's sunday night in primetime. what about jessica yellin, our national political correspondent? tonight she is on with bill maher. i look forward to that as well out in los angeles tonight. next political update in an hour. for the latest political news, go to our website cnnpolitics.com. "parker spitzer," keeping the stories that matter to you on the radar and last night the hosts interviewed the developer of the proposed islamic center in lower manhattan. >> as a piece of real estate, is this the best use for that particular property for you? i mean, is this driven in part by your wish to have an islamic center versus something else, like a gap, or something that would draw in more income? >> you know, this started out -- this is an idea, and this is a concept that we feel is going to help revitalize lower manhattan. the community board has voted

unanimously twice in favor of this project. the mayor, our local elected officials are behind this project, and this is a project that lower manhattan and that new york wants. >> watch "parker spitzer" every night at 8:00 p.m. eastern on cnn. an orange streak in the western sky parks a mystery and a lot of conspiracy theories. now it's fodder for late-night comics. we're following the vapor trail. boss: and now i'll turn it over to the gecko.

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gr. >> you got to love this. my dad sent this to me. i can't get enough of it. watch how 3-year-old jonathan hits everything on cue as he conducts beethoven's fifth symphony, fourth movement by the way. let's watch. ♪ is that incredible? it's like he knows exactly what he's doing. he actually started when he was 8 months old. he has a gift. we will see him directing the aso very soon here in atlanta. the pentagon says that that orange streak over california that touched off conspiracy theories this week was just a vapor trail from a plane. they call it a contrail.

late-night comics had theories of their own. >> reporter: 3, 2, 1! we have liftoff of a story jon stewart dubbed missile impossible. >> looks like it could be a launch from a submarine. >> a missile from a navy ship. >> a secret test? >> a russian sub? >> a u.s. intercontinental ballistic missile. >> i surrender to dorothy. >> reporter: but now the missile theory has surrendered from the pentagon to the website contrailsscience.com. experts believe the plume was just a jet contrail. >> a contrail is a condensation trail. >> reporter: water umming out of the jet from another plane, like your breath on a cold day. though the west coast contrail got an unintentional failic

makeover. >> it was u.s. airways flight 808. >> reporter: this man is an aviation photography buff who focused on airline schedules and found a web cam that captured a similar contrail in the same place 24 hours after the now famous one. >> the same flight was in the same position as well. that was kind of the smoking gun for me. >> reporter: smoking contrail. two days after the west coast missile, there was another strange sighting here in the east coast. wcbs had the video. >> the bizarre glowing streak moving briskly behind the manhattan skyline. >> reporter: they think this one is also from a jet, similar in the situation to the one in which the plane is visual. >> the trail is lit by the setting sun. >> reporter: one joker suggested that the west coast contrail was iron man.